Carbondale bar tosses out town trustee

A Carbondale bar threw out Trustee John Foulkrod after a late-night incident last week in which he threatened to vote against renewing the bar’s liquor license.No charges were filed, and Foulkrod issued an apology Tuesday. He also said he would consider recusing himself from an upcoming vote on whether to renew a liquor license for the embattled Hurricane Grille.Carbondale police were called to the Hurricane Grille, 348 Main St., at 12:24 a.m. on Sept. 15 on a disturbance report.According to police reports, officers learned that Foulkrod wasn’t happy after the bartender told him the bar was closing and no longer serving. After Jaime Graetz, daughter of bar owner Sandy Graetz, told him the same thing, Foulkrod reportedly “became irate with her and called her some names,” according to the incident report officer Matt Gardner filed.He proceeded to tell her “that she didn’t know who she was messing with, that he was on the [town] council and that he was going to vote for them to keep their liquor license, but now he wasn’t and that he was going to shut them down.”Foulkrod also allegedly challenged some bar patrons to a fight after they came to her assistance, and then had to be restrained when Sandy Graetz arrived on the scene, according to the report. Another police officer eventually escorted him away, then drove him home because of his level of inebriation.Graetz later indicated that she did not want to press charges, and that she “didn’t need this happening” in light of the pending liquor license review, according to the police report.The Hurricane is under the microscope regarding its liquor license after nearby residents and business owners filed several complaints related to noise and rowdy behavior in recent months. The matter goes before the town’s board of trustees on Oct. 3.Foulkrod personally dropped a copy of the police report by the Valley Journal office on Tuesday afternoon and apologized for his actions.”I apologize for my behavior; I don’t think it was appropriate,” he said. “I think the Hurricane acted appropriately in denying me access to the bar.”The police report also indicated that Foulkrod is no longer allowed on the Hurricane property.